Neither the initial Portland Public Schools investigation nor the new Education Northwest report concluded that practices employed at King constituted irregularities.

We compared the test practices described at King with what’s prescribed by testing experts and written in the Oregon Department of Education’s testing manuals. We spoke to: Joe Suggs, Portland Public Schools’ director of research, evaluation and assessment; Crystal Greene, an Oregon Department of Education spokeswoman; and Jim Wollack, director of testing and evaluation services at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

The issue has wider significance as standardized testing becomes more and more central to rating schools and teachers. Testing security experts say officials need to standardize testing protocols so students aren’t given unfair advantages.

In some cases, the practices at King appeared to follow what’s recommended. In others, they deviated substantially. Here’s what we found:

From the report:“One interviewee also noted adults could ask students, ‘Is that your final answer?’”

Ruling: Not allowed.

The state’s testing manual prohibits anything other than reading scripted prompts “verbatim,” and “Is that your final answer?” is not one of them. “Do not initiate assistance or give any indication that you can help,” the manual says. All three education officials we interviewed said asking the question during a test could be seen as a form of “student coaching,” which is a testing impropriety.

From the report: “Any student could take a break in a separate break room (recalled by two interviewees), eat a snack (recalled by one interviewee) or complete a test over the course of multiple test sessions (recalled by one interviewee, who noted some students took four or five days to complete a test).”

Ruling: Allowed.

None of these approaches raised much concern for educators we interviewed. The whole testing process can be daunting for anyone, so it makes sense to give ample access to breaks. “It’s cognitively draining, it’s physically draining, and it’s hard to just sit in place at one time,” said Wollack. “Taking a break is something that is necessary.”

From the report: “Additional adults were stationed between pairs of students to provide accommodations like ‘read aloud’ (see section Accommodations below)…”

Ruling: Unclear based on report description.

States encourage testing administrators to provide “accommodations” for students who may have learning challenges to help level the playing the field. Educators are allowed to read math, science and social sciences questions and responses aloud to all students, especially special education students and English Language Learners.

In most cases, the students needing questions to be read aloud shouldn’t be stationed next to students who don’t. Typically, the students who need help should be in another room. "Read aloud accommodations must be provided individually and typically requires a separate setting," the Oregon Department of Education's Accommodations manual says.

From the report: “Additional adults were stationed between pairs of students to … offer encouragement, and remind students of ‘best practices’ like ‘use your resources,’ like highlighting text on the screen, and ‘show your work.’”

Ruling: Not allowed.

The testing manual says educators administering tests need to stick to the script prescribed in the manual to “maintain test security and avoid student coaching.” The manual tells educators the exact words to used when asking as student if he or she needs a break. The most recent testing manual explicitly says telling students to show their work is an “adult-initiated test impropriety.”

Adults also must not lead “students through instructional strategies such as Think Aloud, asking students to point to the correct answer or otherwise identify the source of their answer, or requiring students to show their work,” the manual states.